Thirsty Dog Brewing Co.'s appetite for growth is hardly pint-sized

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The exterior of Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio. The building was originally built in the late 1800s as the Burkhardt Brewing Company which closed in the 1960s.

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TIM HARRISON

Thirsty Dog Brewing Co. co-owner John Najeway, stands amid full kegs in the brewery in Akron, Ohio, January 17, 2017.

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The sign out front of Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

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Brandon Benson, head of brewing operations at Thirsty Dog Brewing Co., and John Najeway, co-owner, stand atop full kegs in their brewery in Akron, Ohio, January 17, 2017.

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Sean Pocock fills kegs of the seasonal Irish Setter Red in the Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

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Brewer Kyle Darrah cleans spent mash out of one of the tanks in the process of making Labrador Lager at the Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

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The tasting room taps at the Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

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A pint of Citra Dog IPA at the Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

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A capped bottle of Citra Dog IPA at Thirsty Dog Brewing Company January 17, 2017, in Akron, Ohio.

Little did John Najeway know that as the man who ushered in the start of a Kentucky beer festival while dressed as a Trappist monk clutching pitchers in either hand and flanked by some 300 Domino's pizzas, that he would one day be running a successful brewery of his own.

He had long hoped to, even well before this event at Fort Mitchell in 1995 billed as a "beer camp." But it was then, as the beer began to flow and his friends and future business partners gathered around, that Najeway realized he was never more certain about getting into the beer business.

Today, Najeway, 47, is co-owner of Akron's Thirsty Dog Brewing Co. The business has changed a bit since its founding 20 years ago, but grown steadily through the years despite ownership changes and a few locations that have come and gone.

With its original mascot still on the label (known as Micro Mutt), and sales only continuing to climb, today's typical customer would never know how much the business has both changed and stayed the same.

Positioning itself among the largest brewers in the state, Thirsty Dog is now on the cusp of a new taproom on a stretch of Akron's Grant Street the brewery calls home — working out of a space once used by Burkhardt Brewery of the mid 1800s with ties to German immigrants and some of the region's first beer brewers.

Meanwhile, a new restaurant and taproom for the East Bank of the Flats is in the works, though there are still terms of that deal in progress and a review underway by the city of Cleveland.

And that's all on top of a growing distribution network that currently covers 15 states, touching nearly everyone from Maine to Florida. West Virginia just recently came online. Chicago is the next market Najeway would like to target.

"I didn't really think we'd be at this point," Najeway said.

"But you have to believe in what you're doing, and you have to have solid business principles and good margins. Otherwise, you'll stay a homebrewer."

Humble beginnings

In 1997, Najeway's friends, including one of his beer camp pals, wanted to bring the brewpub idea to fruition That same year, Najeway had started his own marketing agency, Southpaw Graphics (he's left-handed). Naturally, he found a role in the business alongside his partners in doing marketing and brand design.

Of course, being 1997, there wasn't a craft beer scene like there is today. The term "craft beer" was hardly even a part of the industry lexicon.

Najeway recalls grabbing only the 12th or 13th brewing license in the entire state at the time.

By 1999, there were combined 15-barrel brewhouses and restaurants in Canton, Akron and Dayton.

But there was still a sense that they were making quite a gamble.

"Back then, 20 years ago, the first craft brewers were only five to 10 years ahead of you: the guys like Great Lakes, Sierra Nevada, Anchor Steam," he recalled. "So you had these guys and a lot of people looked at us like we were nuts in 1997 with that brewpub, especially in Dayton."

A production facility came online in 2003 so beers could move beyond Thirsty Dog's own taps.

By the mid-2000s, some of the original business partners had disagreements about running the business. Partly because of that, Najeway said, and despite consistent sales, the three original Thirsty Dog brewpubs were closed by 2005.

"When (Dayton) closed in 2005, it was still ahead of its time," Najeway said. "Now you look at Dayton and they have 15 breweries down there."

Around that period, ownership shifted, and Najeway took control alongside a couple new partners.

In 2006, Thirsty Dog opened a fresh Akron production facility. They did some contract brewing in Maryland between the ownership transition.

Upgrades would soon come to the brewery and packaging operations as craft beer grew in popularity.

Even in 2007, Thirsty Dog was one of just 26 licensed Ohio brewers.

"And as we sit here today in our 20th year, there are 155 licenses in the state and another 20 pending," Najeway said.

The brewery now produces about 20,000 barrels of beer a year. An upgrade this March should grow that to about 30,000 barrels annually. The 30,000 to 40,000 barrels per year production range is where Thirsty Dog wants to be, Najeway said, calling that size range the "sweet spot."

Another round, please

Thankfully for Thirsty Dog, the brand was already well-known in the local scene as consumer interest exploded a few years back. A lot of that came around 2009 and 2010, he recalls, which was about the time the brewery made a big push for new beers to keep the brand-disloyal craft beer drinker interested.

A portfolio of about 14 Thirsty Dog beers at that time has grown to include about 60 today.

"Now that I never thought I'd see," Najeway said. "It's sort of crazy when you think about it."

As a business, that takes more groundwork besides designing recipes and having tank and fermentation space. Each new style takes work in inventory, packaging, labels, caps, six packs, cases and so on.

But it had to be done.

"Back then, you had to be nimble," Najeway said. "We went from 14 beers to 60 to stay relevant with the everyday consumer who was looking for something new from the 50 other breweries that started selling in Ohio."

Because customer loyalty is hard to get, variety is a key to the business model. But that's measured against a push by breweries to focus on core items as more beers flood the market.

To Najeway, that loyalty is someone making three out of every 20 six packs they buy a Thirsty Dog brand.

"That's loyalty, because craft drinkers aren't loyal to the brand, they're loyal to the craft," he said. "And that sucks for building a business."

On the other hand, the huge population of devoted Budweiser drinkers is where Najeway sees potential to nab more consumers. And that makes sense. According to The Brewers Association, craft beer has grown to 12% of the overall beer market in terms of volume, showing that the industry is chipping away at the dominant control of that nation's largest commercial brewers.

"If we can get those guys to try our beers, if we can get in front of them, we can win the battle," he said.

As far as the secret to success? Najeway said it's a simple recipe.

"The secret is simply to fill the bottles with the highest-quality liquid," he said. "All brewers can make porters, lagers and stouts. Brewers will leave one place, go to another, change a profile a little bit and call it their own. You just have to make sure what you put out every day is the best."

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